{recipe} crustless goat cheese cheesecake with mixed berries

I love cheesecake. Peanut butter cup cheesecake. Pumpkin cheesecake. Bourbon pecan pumpkin cheesecake. Any cheesecake really. Cream cheese and I are pretty much best friends in the kitchen.

I didn't think cheesecake could get any better... but then I decided to take my beloved cream cheese out and switch in some goat cheese. Yeah. It happened. And it was delicious.

The flavor was great! It was a little bit lemony, and the light sugar coating at the bottom of the cake was a lovely surprise. You could just taste the goat cheese without it being overpowering. The texture was the same, but it was much lighter than a typical cheesecake. I'm definitely not going to try to stretch the truth and call this "healthy," but you won't feel like you oversplurged as much as you do when eating a traditional cheesecake.

This cheesecake was a little more challenging for me to make than the ones I've made in the past. Mainly because of the pesky addition of beaten egg whites. They are finicky little ingredients to include. You have to wait until "soft peaks form" before folding them into the rest of the cheesecake batter. But it's fine. I succeeded and so can you!

crustless goat cheese cheesecake with mixed berries
Recipe adapted from Bon Appetite magazine

cake ingredients:

• unsalted butter (for pan)
• 3/4 cup sugar plus more for pan
• 12 oz. fresh soft goat cheese, room temperature
• 1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
• 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 6 large eggs, separated
• 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

topping ingredients:

• 1 cup plain greek yogurt
• 2 Tbsp. blueberry preserves + a bit more for color
• drizzle of agave
• 1 1/2 pints mixed berries of choice
• sugar

special equipment: 9" diameter springform pan. electric mixer.

cake directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350*F. Butter springform pan and dust with sugar, tapping out any excess.
2. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat goat cheese, lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla, and 3/4 cup sugar in a large bowl until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add 2 egg yolks at a time, beating to blend and scraping down sides of bowl between additions. Reduce speed to low, add flour, and mix just until blended.
3. Using clean, dry beaters, beat egg whites in a medium bowl until soft peaks form. Fold 1/4 of egg whites into goat cheese mixture just until blended. Scrape into prepared pan and tap pan to level batter.
4. Bake cheesecake until top is set but still jiggles slightly in the center, 30-35 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool in pan.

topping directions:

1. While cheesecake is baking, wash and drain berries. Pour into a bowl and coat with a little bit of sugar. Put back into the refrigerator.
2. Once cake is cool to the touch, mix together greek yogurt, blueberry preserves, and agave. Add enough blueberry preserves to create the color you would like.
3. Spread yogurt mixture evenly onto the cake, and then place the cake into the refrigerator for an hour or longer. 
4. Just before serving, decorate the cake with your berries. Serve the extra berries on the side.

ENJOY!

xx, Jen